As recently as the early 1990s, surgical operations for trauma were directed at the anatomic repair of all injuries at time of the initial operation. It was observed during these exercises that many patients became hypothermic, acidotic, and coagulopathic. Patients showing these three signs often died. Death often occurred in the operating room due to exsanguination, or postoperatively, due to the complications of prolonged shock and massive transfusion to replace blood lost as a result of the trauma.
One of the most notable developments in the recent evolution of surgery has been the reintroduction of the concept of staged laparotomy to overcome the deficiencies of the repair all-at-once approach. This new strategy of staged laparotomy employing new tactics that have been termed damage control is now used in 10% to 20% of all trauma laparotomies.
This strategy opens the way for a variety of new devices and methods for control of hemorrhage from solid organs or viscera. Although there are procedures for controlling these injuries, none of these procedures utilize optimal devices or tactics in their execution. Each area offers technological opportunities to improve the devices and procedures for applying those devices.
Two of the three immediate goals of damage control operations are to contain or stop, as quickly as possible, hemorrhage from major wounds of the solid viscera and to stop bleeding from injured intra-abdominal blood vessels. The third immediate goal of damage, control operations is to immediately arrest fecal or contents spillage from wounded hollow viscera. Such enteral wounds to the hollow viscera commonly occur in multiple areas of the bowel and colon. While existing methods and procedures, including the use of standard vascular instruments, bowel clamps, umbilical tape, and sutures, do allow the rapid control of vascular and visceral injuries in many cases, the standard techniques and tools have not been designed for temporary placement as part of a staged operation. Specifically, the vascular instruments or clamps have long handles that would be subjected to torque associated with temporary packing and closure of the abdomen. In addition, these instruments are not constructed of materials suitable for medium-term implantation and may have features that would cause the devices to become healed into the wound, rather than be easily removable.
During damage control procedures, time is of the essence. Every minute that passes without hemostatic control leads to further blood loss, shock and risk of intraoperative exsanguination. Every minute that passes without control of enteral spillage leads to increased risk of infection and septic death.
Typical vascular injuries requiring hemostatic control may include, for example, a wound to the descending abdominal aorta, the iliac arteries and veins, superior mesenteric vessels, vena cava or the portal vein, renal arteries and veins, and lumbar arteries. Typical enteric injuries requiring spillage control include wounds to the duodenum, small bowel, or colon. These wounds are, most commonly, multiple. The existing methods for controlling these include clamping and sewing, stapling, or resection of the involved bowel segment. All these current methods take much more time than the approach enabled by the methods and devices described below.
New devices, procedures and methods are needed to support the strategy of damage control in patients who have experienced abdominal injury. Such devices and procedures are particularly important in the emergency, military, and trauma care setting.